Fully spring

There are days every year when you know it's good to live here, when you're glad that you do. In the fall the magnificent color changes and crisp air make evrything seem vibrant. The summer warmth and peace are relaxing. The winter snows covering the hillsides and weighing down the trees absorb all the stresses of the world.

But spring -- spring is the best. The last few weeks have seen the slow emergence of color and rebirth around the valley. Yesterday, as I drove through the mountains to Ellensburg, it was as if someone had sprayed green fuzz everywhere, and balsam flowers exploded abundantly. For just a few weeks, everything is green.

This is my favorite moment of the seasons. It's fresh, it's full of life and of potential, a reminder that evrything gets a fresh start at some point.

The fruit blossoms are spent, and the early tulips and daffodils have passed. Now I see two flowers I always associate with May: peonies and Hawthorne tree blooms. We always used to use both to decorate the gravesites at Memorial Day, and Hawthorne is one of my favorites still. My own yard has struggled this spring, but still it progresses, the flowers poking out despite my negligence. The fresh start comes regardless.

So take a few minutes to pause and just soak in the joy of spring. Then take a few more to really enjoy it. It only comes once a year, and it doesn't last long before it is pushed aside by the heat of summer.

-- Wenatchee, Wash.